Dear All
Falkirk MP Eric Joyce has been fined £1,500.
His latest brush with the forces of law and
order centre around him admitting to using threatening or abusive behaviour at
an airport last year.
In order to get a quick done and dusted,
Joyce entered a guilty plea to one charge when he appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff
Court today.
Eric Joyce was once tipped to be a Cabinet
Minister; his fall from grace has been one of the surprises of this Westminster
Parliament.
So, should Eric Joyce stay?
Well given that standards have dropped in
public life to near zero, why not!
Honour, personal integrity and all that
stuff is just window dressing, fuck up, then go into hiding and then re-appear
and claim victimhood;; the Scottish National Party elected members are using that
approach at present.
The charge against Joyce related to an
incident at Edinburgh Airport on May 19 2013 where he was drunk which seems to
be a recurring problem for him.
Speaking outside court, Joyce said he would
"reflect" on whether to continue as an MP until 2015.
He said: "My instinct is to stay but I
don't know how I will feel in a few days."
Eric Joyce to the time to also apologised
to the airport staff, police and his constituents.
He added:
"I am very embarrassed that this has
happened."
Maybe he should go see someone about his
drink problem, clearly when drinking he isn’t what is termed a happy drunk.
Joyce said:
"My constituents have seen this
before, so they might think other apologies are not meant, but they are."
So what happened to prompt this situation,
well being sloshed and leaving his phone behind on the plane from London!
Rather than handling the matter and using
the Police for assistance, a running argument developed between him and airport
baggage handlers.
Then the Police turned up and things didn’t
get any better, they got worse, when Police officers became involved but he still
continued to hurl insults.
Joyce repeatedly called a baggage handler
and officers "fat, f****** w******" and goaded officers to
"f****** arrest me".
£1500, I think he now regrets that
statement.
He also referred to an officer of
Afro-Caribbean origin as "f****** fat and black".
I am sure the Afro-Caribbean officer would
be upset as being outed as ‘fat’, especially in a public place.
Not able to listen to reason, Joyce began
to "flail his arms" when one officer attempted to put him in
handcuffs, and he continued to resist until he was restrained on the floor.
So, everyone except Joyce lived happily
ever after.
Sheriff Frank Crowe described his actions
as a "deeply unfortunate, prolonged, drink-fuelled rant".
He said:
"At least you have taken this
opportunity to apologise."
Defence lawyer Euan Gosney said Joyce was
in a "high state of anxiety" because of the recent death of his
brother and previous trouble with police.
So, what should he have done, he shuld have
gotten a police officer, explained who he was and his position and request they
recover the phone.
That is the cost effective way to save
£1500!
No way to behave in public office, needs to
get his head straight.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow
University
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